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What James Burke showed, ie H and O combined and hey presto a rocket takes off is not really right. The first stage was fired by a solid fuel called RP1 (Rocket Propellant).
I’m more than willing to cut him a bit of poetic license over that. The basic principle is the same – combine an oxidising agent with a reducing agent to expel mass at great speed.
Whilst we’re off topic, here’s a bit of James Burke reporting on Apollo 11 (the BBC wiped or lost most of its broadcast):
James Burke’s Connections deserves to be in the pantheon of ‘Good television‘ with the likes of Carl Sagan’s Cosmos. Seeing it mentioned has brightened my day – thanks!I’ve recently read “Three Men and a Bradshaw” the holiday diaries of a chap in the 1870’s. I don’t recall that the proto-bicycles of the time getting a mention but it does paint a vivid portrait of a world in which the ‘Cambrian Explosion‘ of bicycle design of the 1880’s & 90’s was imminent.
https://www.waterstones.com/book/three-men-and-a-bradshaw/john-george-freeman/9781847947444 (Well worth a read)
For a randonee through the evolutionary pathways of the bi/tri cycle “Bicycle Design: an illustrated history’ (Hadland & Lessing): https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/bicycle-design makes for an entertaining guide.
One of the things that it demonstrates is how ideas appear ‘before-their-time’ are then forgotten until they reappear when conditions are rather more propitious. Using designs that were appearing at the time it would have been possible in the later 1890’s to have produced an aluminium framed bike with full suspension & disc brakes ~ something that needed a century to pass before it became a marketable reality.
Thanks for those recommendations – I’ll see if I can add some more books to my ever expanding reading list.
I’d put James Burke’s Connections into the pantheon of ‘Great Television’ and a special mention has to be made of possibly the greatest shot ever in TV journalism. No green screen, no special effect, just one chance to get it right if you have the most incredible timing:
Another factor might be that, unlike clocks and mills, the bicycle doesn’t seem to address a need. We walked. If we needed to carry heavy loads, we used a horse and cart. To go quickly, we rode a horse. But mostly we walked. So transport wasn’t something we lacked. Whereas telling the time with any more precision than morning, noon, afternoon and night – and so being able to arrange meetings, for instance – was something we couldn’t do.By the way, I second the recommendation for the Herschel Museum.
I did read somewhere (can’t remember where) about how the Romans could possibly have invented bicycles much earlier, but obviously didn’t. There was mention of how Roman roads often had two smooth grooves in them to allow cart wheels to travel easily and a bicycle would be a natural shape (as opposed to a tricycle) to also use one of those smooth ruts.
By the way, the most important application of clocks was navigation – the easiest way to determine longitude is with an accurate timepiece.
Incidentally, if anyone is interested in how developments in one area spur developments elsewhere, then I can thoroughly recommend James Burke’s Connections series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XetplHcM7aQ
Re: “Americans who think Pluto should still be classified as a planet, because it was the only large solar system object discovered by an American“If I was witty I’d be able to craft a joke around the theme of the inhabitants of Bath & the discovery of Uranus …. sadly I’m not.
p.s – A museum recomend: https://herschelmuseum.org.uk/
Thanks for the museum recommendation – I might give that a visit.
Thank you for that, good to know about the levels of choreography and planning.You’re welcome. I thought it was a well written article and really makes you appreciate how much effort they put into it – those pilots must be incredible.
Not this kind of flying
Not this kind of flying squirrel
They had a tent up at the end of the Great Weston Ride on Sunday so I got my bike marked and registered as it’s free. Luckily I’ve never had cause to see if it’s worthwhile as I imagine it’s only a small number of bikes that get recovered by the police.Apparently having the sticker saying it’s marked acts as a deterrent to bike thieves. I’ll be interested to see what experiences people on this thread have had.
Well I had one of my BMX race bikes marked and one of my son’s. Neither was ever stolen.
My bike hasn’t been stolen since Sunday, either.
I went subtle:Username: YouMumsAreLovely
Are you all mums?
Because I really fear for the future of society if this is the kind of educating you’re engaged in!
Just to clarify, how much are you willing to pay for your Chardonnay to have a number plate on her Peppa Pig trike and be tested for her driving abilities? Or rather, do you prefer to hurl swear words at her whilst she gets fat on turkey twizzlers inspired by diamond crush on her knocked off iPad?
Like a weasel in a rabbit warren.
Keep up the good work.
A weasel?
Sorry, I could only stomach a few posts. They were less rabid than I expected though.I like this one that raises a question that more cyclists should be asking about PPE on the roads:
“Was she wearing hi-viz”Why? Are we all supposed to wear hi viz now when walking on pavements in case a cyclist on the pavement wishes to speed along the same pavement? [confused]
That was me
Noice!
They had a tent up at the end
They had a tent up at the end of the Great Weston Ride on Sunday so I got my bike marked and registered as it’s free. Luckily I’ve never had cause to see if it’s worthwhile as I imagine it’s only a small number of bikes that get recovered by the police.
No, it’s not.
No, it’s not.
It still surprises me just how racist parts of the U.S. actually are. It’s noticeable that the press shies away from using the term “racist” despite all the evidence
https://boingboing.net/2019/07/15/why-wont-the-big-news-outlet.html
and of course Trump is not bothered about being labelled a racist: https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1150815828218003461/video/1
In addition, it appears that neither of our potential Prime Ministers have the common decency to call him a racist.
Sorry, I could only stomach a
Sorry, I could only stomach a few posts. They were less rabid than I expected though.
I like this one that raises a question that more cyclists should be asking about PPE on the roads:
“Was she wearing hi-viz”Why? Are we all supposed to wear hi viz now when walking on pavements in case a cyclist on the pavement wishes to speed along the same pavement? [confused]
Boatsie wrote:
Please explain a genuine query – What has a cheese and sofa company got anything to do with cyclophobia and hatred? If they do not carry favour and incite hatred to cyclists, then it looks like I am going to have to burn my modular sofa using the molten red wax of my mini cheeses.
Is that wax? We’re supposed to eat that? Core tastes better though, yes.
I don’t know if I dreamt it, but I’m sure I saw a mint flavoured BabyBel on an advert last night.
Ditto about the drivetrain.
Ditto about the drivetrain. You can never spend too much time caring for your drivetrain.
Check your tyres have sufficient pressure every so often as well as that can make a big difference to how fast the bike goes and may provide warning of a slow puncture.
If you’re going to use a pressure washer, try to avoid shooting water at any of the bearings as the pressure can allow water to get past the bearing seals and then cause corrosion. Personally, I use a bucket with warm water and car shampoo (doesn’t have salt in like washing up liquid) and some old washing up sponges when my bike has some dirt on it (probably every other week).
In general, bikes don’t require much maintenance, but pay attention if a new noise develops whilst riding. Although noises are notoriously difficult to pin down, they often signal that something has worked loose or needs attention.
Read Road.cc – end up with anger issues again.The best way of dealing with anger issues is to go for a bike ride.
and hopefully not get run-over. Riding home soon via a Mcdonalds (always a danger point of chav mobiles). Wish me luck.
Good luck!
I find fish’n’chip shops to be worse for random parking/pulling out and general not looking around before maneuvering.
